The Road Back Home
by TBBT78
Summary: On an afternoon in late April 2010 Leonard left work to drive home alone. A day later his car was found abandoned by a river miles from Pasadena, its driver missing… Set after the Leonard and Penny breakup in S3. It will tell the story of Leonard's disappearance and his friend's quest to find him. DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Big Bang Theory.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This story has been on my mind for a few weeks now, not exactly sure how it will go, but let's see... **

**This initial chapter takes place in the present a year after Leonard has gone missing, but will go back to tell the story of his disappearance. Just to warn you that there might be time gaps in between updates as it takes me a little longer to complete chapters than the more accomplished writers on this website. **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Big Bang Theory.**

Penny gazed sadly through the window of Rossini's Italian restaurant seeing a dozen round tables covered with pristine white linen table cloths, upon each table a lit candle in a frosted glass and a silver vase containing a single red rose. It was early Saturday evening and only a few tables were occupied, all by couples. Without affording herself any time for contemplation she pushed open the door to the restaurant stepping inside to come to wait by a maître d station.

"Buonasera Signora." Signor Rossini, the grey haired restaurant manager said as he walked toward her, greeting her with a warm welcoming smile. "So wonderful to see you again, it has been some time... Do you have a reservation?" he asked, as he turned to study the open diary on the desk.

"Erm I.." Penny mumbled, having spent the last hour trying to convince herself that she could handle coming to the restaurant that had been hers and Leonard's favourite place to dine, she was starting to wonder whether it had in fact been a mistake.

"Don't worry it's not a problem at all. I assume Dr Hofstadter will be joining you shortly?" he said, recalling the spectacle wearing physicist that had accompanied the attractive blond on numerous visits to his restaurant. He had a good memory for his customers, particularly as they had seemed so happy and relaxed together. With a lump in her throat Penny replied.

"Leonard and I broke up." She told him, her gaze dropping to the floor, unable to bring herself to tell him that in the weeks following their break up he had gone missing and had not been seen or heard from in almost a year.

"Oh Signora please forgive me." he said his hand coming to rest on his chest, embarrassed by his somewhat indiscrete presumption. It was clear from Penny's pained expression and sad eyes that it was still causing her considerable upset.

"Please allow me to show you to your table."

Picking up a leather bound menu from the shelf below the station Signor Rossini ushered Penny to a table over by the window, pulling out a chair for her to sit before placing the menu on the table in front of her.

"Could I order a glass of the house red please?" she asked.

"Very good. Please take your time." he said in response, bowing his head as he moved away.

Opening the menu to inspect the selection of antipasti, Penny heard a female diner on a nearby table giggling. Peering over the top of her menu she saw a young couple of similar age to her, holding hands across the table. The woman was happily admiring a diamond ring on her left hand as her partner sipped his coffee.

"I think we should get married next spring." she was saying followed by a deep contented sigh. "I've always dreamt about having a spring wedding..."

Just then a waiter arrived with a glass of red wine and a bowl of green olives on a tray. After taking a long sip of her wine Penny picked up a cocktail stick, using it to select one of the olives. Smiling sadly to herself she removed the olive from the stick setting it on the table before placing an empty water glass over it and spinning the glass, catching the olive inside. Instantly she was transported back to her first unofficial date with Leonard shortly after she's moved into her apartment...

"_Wow, centrifugal force!"_

"_Actually, it's centripetal force, which is an inward force generated by the glass acting on the olive.."_

Tears sprung to Penny's eyes as the olive fell from the glass, rolling onto the floor beneath the table. Quickly she dropped down onto her hands and knees and crawled under the table, not to retrieve the fallen olive, but to hide.

"Signora are you alright?"

Signor Rossini lifted the table cloth to be greeted by the sight of Penny sat on the floor, her head buried in her knees, crying inconsolably.

"I..I'm sorry..." she sobbed, realising how utterly ridiculous it was for a grown woman to be discovered hiding under a table in a restaurant, crying like a child. "I shouldn't have come here... I need to go home."

Removing a napkin from the table the Signor Rossini passed it to Penny who used it to dab her eyes that were now red and puffy from crying.

"I'm so sorry... it's just that after Leonard and I broke up...he...he went missing...it's been almost a year now.." she revealed, between heaving sobs. "The police found his car abandoned by a river..."

"Oh Signora. I am _so_ sorry to hear that..." Signor Rossini responded, his face full of sympathy for the young woman that was now sitting under his best table pouring her heart out to him.

"They never...they never found a body..." Penny told him, biting down on her bottom lip to stop it from quivering. "But he hasn't been seen or heard from since. We have no idea what happened to him..or why he went away..."

For a moment Signor Rossini allowed Penny to cry before offering his hand to help her to climb out from under the table. Thankfully the newly engaged couple that had been dining on the nearby table had since finished paying their check and had gone.

"I'm sorry...here let me pay for the wine and the olives.." Penny began, fumbling in her purse which hung on the back of her chair and producing a credit card.

"No please Signora that's quiet alright." Signor Rossini dismissed with a wave of his hand. "It's on the house."

"Thank you." Penny said gratefully, slipping the credit card back into her purse. "I really am sorry. I don't make a habit of crawling under tables in restaurants to ball my eyes out.." She added forcing a weak smile before taking out her cell phone to call a taxi to take her home. Unfortunately she had ignored the 'check engine' light in her car for too long and it was now in the shop undergoing extensive repairs for which she had no idea how she was going to pay.

"Please allow me to give you a ride home." Signor Rossini offered. The restaurant was quiet that evening and he was insistent that his son and his wife would have no trouble managing without him for a time."I would feel so much better knowing that you got home safely." he added, with genuine concern for the distressed young woman.

Penny hesitated for a few moments before eventually accepting his offer.

"Well if you're sure. That's very kind of you Signor Rossini." she responded, glancing in the direction of the window and noticing that it had begun to rain heavily outside.

"Please you must call me Gino."

Penny smiled.

"Ok but only if you'll call me Penny."

* * *

After giving Gino her address and directions to Los Robles Avenue Penny sat in silence for the first few miles of the journey, preferring to listen to selection of operatic music playing on the radio and the intermittent swish of the windshield wipers.

"I suppose you must think I'm crazy.." she said, finally deciding to break the silence.

"No not at all. I can't even imagine how difficult it must be to have someone you love go missing and not know what happened to them..." Gino replied, taking his eyes off the road briefly to look at Penny who had begun to fidget uncomfortably in her seat.

"Actually the whole reason Leonard and I broke up was because he told me that he loved me and I wasn't ready to say it back..." she said, her voice trailing off as she turned her head to stare out the window at the passing rain soaked scenery. "You know the week after he went missing I called his cell phone to leave a message. I told him that I loved him. The stupid thing is I knew he didn't have his phone, the police found it in his car along with his wallet... I just hoped that somehow he'd sense that I _did_ love him and come back home.."

A single tear rolled down Penny's cheek as she remembered those agonising first weeks. Even now every time the phone rang or when she checked her mail, she would hold her breath, praying for a message just to let her know that he was alive and safe.

"So what are the police doing right now?" Gino asked, as he brought the car to a stop at an intersection, applying the handbrake.

Penny shrugged, her initial reaction was to come back with _'not enough in my opinion'_, but then she changed her mind.

"It's still an open missing person's case, but I reckon they've come to the conclusion that Leonard doesn't want to be found or that..." she couldn't even bring herself to say the word out loud. She for one refused to entertain the notion that Leonard was dead. "Thousands of people get reported as missing every day. I guess they're trying their best, but to them Leonard is just another statistic..."

For a moment Gino took his hand off the steering wheel to squeeze Penny's knee.

"Listen Penny if they're anything I can do...maybe I could put some posters up in my restaurant. You never know perhaps somebody knows something that could help..."

Penny smiled gratefully. Gino was such a warm and kind man who in many ways reminded her of her own father. Ten minutes later the car pulled up outside the lamp store adjacent to entrance of her apartment building.

"You will call me if you need to talk or if there's anything I can do?" Gino asked as Penny got out of the car thanking him once again for his kindness and for the ride home.

"Sure. I will thank you Gino."

By now the rain had subsided and Penny waited on the sidewalk waving as her new friend drove off into the evening Pasadena traffic. With a heavy heart she turned on her heels making her way towards the entrance of 2311 N. Once inside she ascended the stairs to the fourth floor, as she climbed recalling the fight that had erupted on pizza night in apartment 4A. Without thinking Howard had helped himself to the last slice of cheese free pizza which Sheldon insisted on ordering, despite the fact that none of his friends other than Leonard was lactose intolerant. Stood watching from over by the refrigerator Penny had seen the look of horror upon Sheldon's face as Howard began to munch on the pizza.

"Howard what do you think you're doing?" he demanded, "You know that we always save the last slice of pizza for Leonard."

Howard responded with an irritated sigh, lately he had even less patience for Sheldon and his ritualistic behaviour.

"Sheldon we all wish that Leonard was here, but I think we have to accept he's not gonna just walk back through the door to join us for pizza.." he snapped, the words escaping his mouth sounding harsher than what was intended.

"Howie please..." Bernadette cautioned, sensing that her boyfriend was edging dangerously close to starting a fight.

"Well it's just seems stupid." Howard responded, deciding he no longer wanted to eat the remaining slice of pizza he tossed it back into its box. "Sooner or later we're just gonna have to face it that Leonard isn't coming back.."

"We don't know that dude." Raj interjected, clutching a bottle of beer that enabled him to talk in front of Penny and Bernadette.

"Don't we? My dad walked out on me and my Mom when I was eleven. I haven't seen him in nearly twenty years.." Howard said with distinct bitterness in his voice. "I'm pretty sure I'll never see him again.."

"Howie your Dad leaving you and your Mom is entirely different from Leonard. " Bernadette pointed out, resting her hand on his hand in an effort to calm him.

"I used to blame myself for my Dad going and it took me years to realise that it wasn't my fault, but with Leonard I _know_ that as friends we let him down..." Howard continued, getting to his feet and averting his gaze to the floor in an effort to avoid Sheldon's fierce stare.

"Howard we don't know the reason why Leonard went away. " Raj said pointedly.

"Oh please of course we know. Leonard was totally cut up about his break up with Penny. Only his roommate was to busy obsessing about losing a bowling match to his supposed '_mortal enemy'_ and treating him like a doormat to notice...you and me Raj all we did was make fun of him."

Bernadette rose from the couch grabbing Howard by the arm.

"Howie I think you've said enough now..." she said with pleading eyes, hoping to stop him before the situation escalated further, but it was already too late.

"No Bernie. I'm only telling the truth. Leonard must have been in a really bad place, if we'd been decent friends we would have seen it..."

Reaching into the pizza box on the coffee table Howard picked up the discarded last slice.

"So I think it' gonna take a little more than a cheese free pizza to assuage our guilt.."

Upon concluding Howard threw the pizza at the wall where it stuck for a few seconds before sliding down onto the floor, leaving a trail of tomato sauce, after which the room fell silent.

"I think Pizza night is over now. I want everyone except Penny to leave." Sheldon instructed quietly.

Without protesting the three friends began to slowly file out of the apartment, stood in the doorway Howard paused looking back at Sheldon seated on his spot on the couch and Penny still stood over by the refrigerator, her head turned away to hide her tears.

"I'm sorry Sheldon." he apologised. "I didn't mean to upset you. I know Leonard was..._is_ your best friend and I know how much you miss him ...and not just because of all the stuff he used to do for you. I miss him too.."

Focused on the coffee table Sheldon didn't see the tears glistening in Howard's eyes as he spoke. Together they were five broken hearted friends bound together by their mutual love of Leonard.

"I'll pay for all the pizzas for everyone next Thursday." he added, before closing the door.

Arriving on the fourth floor landing, and after not seeing him since the events of Thursday night, Penny decided to check in on Sheldon. It was only when she knocked on his apartment door, and noticed that it was gone 8pm, that she realised he would be down in the basement doing his laundry.

"Hey Sheldon." Penny said as she entered into the laundry room to find him folding his t-shirts with precision using a folding board. "I just thought I'd see how you're doing, you know after what happened Thursday." She added.

Sheldon shrugged.

"I'm ok." he replied flatly without looking up, continuing with the task at hand.

"Anyways, I've been doing some thinking and I reckon that they must be more we could do to try find Leonard." Penny began, doing her upmost to come across as upbeat and positive, even though inside she felt like she was dying.

"Oh Penny if I haven't been able to come up with any new ideas I'm certain that you haven't. That's axiomatic."

Penny didn't know the meaning of the word _'axiomatic'_, but she could tell from the tone of his voice that it was one of his_ 'unintentional'_ insults. Taking a deep breath she made the decision to allow the insult to go unchecked, although in truth he was right, she hadn't come up with anything that they hadn't already tried.

"I don't know. Maybe once my car's been fixed we can drive out to that gas station and the diner near where Leonard's car was found...we could have some new posters printed... maybe somebody might remember something that could help us..."

"We did all that a year ago Penny." Sheldon pointed out, sounding tired and defeated.

Penny fell silent as she watched Sheldon load one of the machines with the sheets from his bed before adding the precise amount of detergent required. Suddenly she was overcome with anger and frustration.

"Ahhhhh!" she cried, startling Sheldon, causing him to drop the bottle of detergent.

"You know what Sheldon I'm just so damned angry with him! I mean how _dare_ he do this to us?" Penny yelled, throwing her arms in the air. "For all we know he's sitting on a beach in Mexico while we're all here going out of minds with worry..."

"That's seems unlikely. Not with Leonard's fair complexion..." Sheldon responded, matter-of-factly provoking bitter laughter from Penny.

"Not even one call." she said, after her laughter had faded away and her facial expression had returned to one of pain and anguish. "Just to let us know that he's ok..why Sheldon? Why hasn't he called?"

For once Sheldon realised that Penny's question was rhetorical. He no more had the answers than she did.

"Well you know what screw him...screw you Leonard Hofstadter..Screw you!"

With that Penny began to kick out in rage at the row of washing machines, only stopping when the throbbing pain in her toes became unbearable. Out of breath and consumed with her own anger, at first she didn't notice that Sheldon had retreated to the corner the room, hung his head and had begun to cry. It was something that even since the pain of Leonard's disappearance he had yet to do in front of her.

"Oh sweetie I didn't mean to yell like that.." Penny soothed, remembering how much he disliked fighting and the sound of raised voices. "I'm angry with Leonard, but I still want him back home more than anything..."

"What if Howard's right?" Sheldon whimpered, he'd been unable to think of anything else except Howard's grim prophecy on Thursday evening. "What if Leonard is_ never_ coming back like his Dad?"

"No we can't think like that." Penny responded, shaking her head in defiance. "We have to believe that he _will _come back. I know Leonard is out there someplace.." she continued pointing at the doorway which led into the hall and after a few meters to street and the outside world. "He just needs us to keep trying and not to give up hope and eventually we _will _find him and convince him that he belongs _here_ with his friends that love him.."

There was a pause while Sheldon produced a handkerchief and blew his nose.

"We are going to do this Sheldon. You and I we _will_ find Leonard. Ok?" Penny said firmly.

Sheldon nodded his acceptance and then for only the third time in four years he submitted to a hug.

**The Fuzzy Boots Corollary (Episode 3. Season 3.)**


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Big Bang Theory.**

**The day of Leonard's disappearance...**

That day Penny was completely run off her feet during her lunchtime shift at the Cheesecake Factory. A newspaper coupon promotion had attracted a large crowd of impatient and demanding diners who seemed oblivious to the fact that she only had one pair of hands, not to mention the fact that she wasn't very good at her job. By 2pm she was fit to drop and decided to reward herself with an 'unofficial' break, sneaking out the back of the restaurant to escape for a few minutes respite.

"Hey Penny."

Penny had only just sat down on the bottom step of the fire escape when Daryl, one of the waiters emerged from the backdoor, finding her staring aimlessly into space seemingly lost in her thoughts.

"Penny you got the order wrong for table two." he informed her. "They both ordered the salmon not the pasta salad.."

"Dammit." Penny muttered under her breath. She had already been reprimanded by her manager twice that day for making mistakes with orders, mistakes which would inevitably affect the tips that she had come to rely so heavily upon to supplement her pitiful wages.

"Its ok I picked up your mistake and sorted it..." Daryl added quickly "But we really need you back inside we're slammed ..."

Exhaling deeply Penny got to her feet, thinking all the while what she would give to be able to rip of her apron right then and quit the job which she had come to detest.

"Thanks for covering for me Daryl." She said, with a weary smile. "I really appreciate it. The dragon's been on my tail all day..."

"No problem." Daryl replied, returning Penny's smile. Like her he was an aspiring actor and had just completed a three month stint in a play, returning to work at the Cheesecake Factory until he could find acting work again.

"Are you ok Penny?" he asked. "You've been making a few more mistakes recently and you've seemed a little distant..."

"I'm a terrible waitress remember." Penny answered as she straightened her uniform and ascended the steps to the door of the kitchen.

"Are you sure? You just don't seem yourself." Daryl pressed; once or twice he'd noticed her coming back from a break looking as though she'd been crying, although he hadn't wanted to ask for fear of her thinking that he was prying.

Sighing Penny decided to reveal her secret.

"I guess you'll probably find out sooner or later...Leonard and I broke up." She informed him, making Daryl only the second person at work whom she'd told, the first being her friend Kim. "Please don't tell anyone else, you know what this place is like for gossip.."

Daryl nodded.

"Sure. That's too bad. I thought you guys were really happy together." he responded. He'd met Leonard and his group of friends on several occasions when they had come to the restaurant to dine on a Tuesday evening and had instantly formed a good impression of him.

Penny's gaze dropped sadly to the ground.

"Listen why don't you come for a drink with me after our shift? Just as friends of course." Daryl added as an afterthought, he didn't want her to think that he was using her vulnerable state as an opportunity to hit on her. "You look like you could use a little cheering up."

"Sure ok. Why not." Penny replied, she had no plans that evening other than spending it alone in her apartment drowning her sorrows in a bottle of wine and she enjoyed Daryl's company. After they finished work Penny drove her and Daryl to a bar within walking distance of her apartment building. Taking up seats on stools at the bar they each ordered a beer.

"It's just so awkward with Leonard being my neighbour and the fact that we were friends before.." Penny began to explain after taking several slugs of her beer and waiting for the alcohol to take effect.

"Would it be ok for me to ask why you broke up?" Daryl asked, whilst absentmindedly fiddling with a beermat.

Penny began to explain how Leonard had declared his love for her and how she had not felt ready to say it back.

"In the end I thought it wasn't fair on him to wait for me to be ready.." she said, her voice trailing off as she remembered how desperate Leonard had been to make things work, but how she had wound up running out on him at the bowling alley.

"And how do you feel now?"

Penny shrugged.

"Empty."

It was the first word that came to mind.

Just then Penny's cell phone began to ring, Sheldon's name appearing on the display screen.

"It's Sheldon, Leonard's roommate." Penny remarked, glancing down at her phone before quickly deciding that she wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, particularly Sheldon.

"Aren't you gonna answer it?" Daryl asked, a second later the ringing stopped and the call went through to voicemail. Continuing with their conversation, Penny waited until Daryl got up to use the restroom a while later to listen to the voicemail message from Sheldon.

"_Penny it's Sheldon. For some inexplicable reason Leonard has left work without me, I don't have my bus pants so I need you to give me a ride home..."_ he instructed, sounding flustered and enormously put out by Leonard's breech of the roommate agreement. "_He didn't even give me the required 24 hour notice period.."_

Letting out an irritated sigh Penny hung up the phone and deleted the message. Whilst waiting for Daryl to return she checked her Facebook page, noticing that Howard had made a crass comment about Leonard hooking back up with Leslie Winkle. Angered she ordered two tequila shots.

"Would you mind if I made an observation Penny?" Daryl began, an hour and three tequila shots later.

"Sure." Penny answered leaning one elbow on the bar and signalling to the bar tender with her free hand to replenish her shot glass.

"You said that past relationships have made you wary about telling someone that you love them to quickly, but you haven't said that you _definitely don't_ love Leonard...it's just that you don't think it's fair on him to wait for you to be ready."

Picking up her glass Penny downed her fourth shot before slamming it down on the bar and demanding another.

"You're very assstute Daryl." She slurred, citing a word which had picked up from Sheldon. "Very very assstute..."

"Honey I think you've probably had enough. Perhaps we should be getting you home." Daryl suggested, getting down from his own stool and assisting a very tipsy Penny to get to her feet. With her arm around Daryl's neck for support, they were making their way toward the door the when the jukebox began to play, filling the bar with the sound of what had been Leonard and Penny's favourite song.

"I've made a mistake haven't I?..." Penny said sadly, turning her head to look into Daryl's eyes, as if searching there for answers.

"Only _you _can know that." Daryl responded honestly. "But for what it's worth I've always thought that Leonard was a great guy, but only you can decide if you do love him and if you've made the right decision.."

"Daryl." Penny hiccupped.

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm gonna throw up.."

Daryl managed to get Penny outside into the refreshing cool night air and into the adjacent alleyway just in time for her to be sick into a dumpster.

"I've blown it Daryl haven't I?" she said as made their way along the sidewalk headed for Los Robles Avenue.

"Listen I'm sure you guys can work it out..." Daryl soothed, stopping to brush a lose strand of Penny's hair that had been blown by the breeze into her face. "He loves you Penny.."

Those were the last words that Penny recalled. The next thing she knew she was waking up the following morning in her own bed, still dressed in her waitress uniform. Groaning with the effects of a pounding headache Penny rolled onto her side, seeing a hand written note stuck to one of her stuffed animals.

'_Good Morning Penny. Call me if you need to talk again. D.' _

On her nightstand there were two aspirins which she swallowed, downing them with a glass of water that had also been provided in anticipation of a hangover. It was then she noticed the time on her alarm clock.

"Dammit!" she yelled, flinging back the comforter. It had completely slipped her mind that her manager had scheduled her to do the breakfast shift that morning. With only time to change into a fresh uniform, brush her teeth and spray on some deodorant, Penny was grabbing her purse to leave when she heard the sound of familiar knocking on her apartment door.

"Penny...Penny...Penny..."

Answering the door she found Sheldon studying a piece of paper which on which there was a list of items.

"Penny I need you to drive me to work via the grocery store." he said, without even the hint of a _'would you mind_' or a _'please'_. "My friend Professor Elizabeth Plimpton ,a noted cosmological physicist from Princeton University will be arriving today and there are things I need to purchase.."

"I have to get to work Sheldon." Penny replied flatly, stepping into the hall, closing and locking the door before making her way down the stairs with Sheldon trailing on behind. "Why can't Leonard take you?"

"Leonard isn't home." he answered, the irritation clearly evident in his voice. "That's why I need _you_ to take me."

Penny came to a halt on the third floor landing, Sheldon had already moved on to question her about which brand of maxi pads and what size pantyhose he should buy when she interrupted him.

"What do you mean Leonard isn't home?" she questioned.

"From what Wolowitz and Koothrappalli were saying at lunch yesterday I'm given to understand that Leonard, get this, wants to engage in '_recreational coitus'_ with Leslie Winkle." he answered, folding his arms across his chest displaying his annoyance at what he considered to be a betrayal of his friendship. "Now that you and he are no longer having .."

"Yeah I think I get the picture Sheldon." Penny interrupted again displaying the palm of her hand, the effects of her hangover were already making her feel nauseated and the image of Leonard and Leslie having sex which Sheldon had just conjured had served to increase the feeling tenfold.

"I'm telling you Leonard has no consideration for me whatsoever. He knows how much I loathe Leslie Winkle...he doesn't think of anyone but himself!"

By now the two neighbours had reached the downstairs lobby.

"Really? So what about all the stuff Leonard does for you? Chauffeuring you around town to the train store or the dentist whenever you demand it? Or running around getting you takeout meals that have to be _'just so'_?" Penny snapped angrily, her hands placed firmly on her hips.

"You know very well Penny that Leonard is obligated to do all those things under the terms of the roommate agreement." Sheldon responded with a satisfied smile, certain that it was point with which Penny would be unable to argue.

"Is he obligated to put up with you being a giant pain in the ass too?" Penny retorted.

Ordinarily she was better at biting her tongue when it came to Sheldon, but the combination of the hangover and the early morning was causing her to let rip. Satisfied that she'd had the last word Penny turned abruptly, pushing open the door to exit the building.

"Penny I still need you to take me to the grocery store and to work..." Sheldon persisted, following her out into the street, oblivious to her rapidly shortening fuse and rising temper. "Perhaps if I were to buy you some ice cream..."

The mention of ice cream instantly brought back memories of the break up at the bowling alley and was the last straw.

"You know what sooner or later Leonard is gonna stop putting up with all your crap Sheldon and tear up that stupid roommate agreement! I for one think it can't happen soon enough..."

It was then that Penny remembered that her car was still in the parking lot at the bar that she and Daryl had gone to the previous night, now she would need to walk three blocks to pick it up making her even later for work than she was already. With Sheldon calling after her and tears stinging her eyes Penny stomped off down the street.

* * *

Arriving back home later that afternoon Penny registered the presence of a police car parked outside the entrance of the building, but didn't think anything of it until she reached the fourth floor and noticed that the door to Sheldon and Leonard's apartment was ajar. From inside she could hear Sheldon conversing with someone whose voice she didn't recognise. Without knocking she entered the apartment to find Sheldon sat on his spot on the couch, alongside him was Howard and Raj. In the armchair a male uniformed police officer was busily taking down notes.

"Dr. Cooper, how would you describe Dr. Hofstadter's state of mind recently?" he was asking. "Has he been under any emotional strain?"

Hearing these words Penny's heart rate quickened, it was evident that something was terribly wrong.

"Sheldon what's going on?" she asked nervously, her eyes darting from the police officer over to Sheldon.

"I'm sorry Mam you are?" the police officer enquired, looking up at the blond woman that had just wandered into the apartment uninvited.

"I'm Penny I live across the hall."

"Leonard has gone missing Penny..." Raj said quietly, his voice sounding almost childlike.

"What?" Penny breathed, her hand momentarily clasping over her mouth as the news hit. "I thought you said he was with Leslie Winkle?" she added, directing her question toward Sheldon who promptly turned his head away.

The three friends had encountered Leslie in the university cafeteria at lunchtime and after the usual exchange of insults with Sheldon, Howard had rather crudely asked her about Leonard's _'performance_' the night before.

"I don't know where you've got your information from Howard." Leslie had replied, her face wrinkling into one of disgust. "But I haven't seen Leonard since he left here yesterday ..."

"Where is he then?" Penny demanded, it was mid-afternoon which meant that Leonard had been missing for more than 24 hours without them even realising.

"That's what we're trying to ascertain here Mam." the police officer answered. "We found Dr Hofstadter's car up by the Santa Ana River in Orange Country, five miles out from Anaheim. There were no signs of any foul play, but it seems he left both his wallet and cell phone behind."

Turning his attention back to Sheldon the officer reiterated his question about Leonard's recent state of mind.

"I guess you could say he's been down..." Howard offered, knowing that Sheldon was hopeless at interpreting human emotions, despite the fact that Leonard was supposedly his best friend.

"Yes he's been crying an awful lot recently.." Sheldon agreed.

Hearing this Penny hung her head, Sheldon had recently let slip the fact that Leonard had been crying over her when she'd had him over to her apartment for spaghetti.

"Why would that be?" the police officer enquired.

"Because we broke up." Penny quickly cut in, wanting to get in before Sheldon had the opportunity to launch into reams of unnecessary detail which would undoubtedly include multiple mentions of the word _'coitus'_. "We were dating until recently, but then we broke up."

"I see. And does Dr Hofstadter have any history of going missing? Or self-harm?"

"No of course not! Leonard would never do something like that!" Penny exclaimed, her stomach knotting at the mere suggestion of Leonard hurting himself. "He's most likely broken down or gotten lost or something...Leonard doesn't know the first thing about fixing cars.."

The police officer cleared his throat.

"If that were the case Mam it would be more likely for him to call for help on his cell phone rather than leave his car." he pointed out, it was a statement with which Penny couldn't argue, she knew that Leonard had roadside assistance cover and inbuilt satellite navigation making the scenario she had just put forward seem somewhat implausible.

"Is there anywhere Dr Hofstadter might go? Friends? Family perhaps?" the officer continued after noting down Sheldon's response. The three men each shook their heads simultaneously.

"Leonard doesn't have a lot of friends aside from us." "Sheldon explained. "His family live in New Jersey...His mother is an eminent neuroscientist and psychiatrist, truly a remarkable woman, but for some unfathomable reason Leonard has never gotten along with her.."

Leonard's relationship with his mother was something which had always baffled him, on many occasions he had stated how much he envied him growing up with Beverley Hofstadter as a mother, who differed from his own mother in every respect.

"Ok well you have my number if you think of anything that might assist us with our investigation." the officer concluded, closing his notebook and rising from the armchair. "We'll keep you informed."

"So that's it?" Penny said, exasperated by what she perceived to be a lack of action on the part of the police. "Shouldn't you be checking the hospitals?...Leonard has asthma.."

"I can assure you Mam we are doing all we can to find Dr Hofstadter. I know it's hard, but I'm afraid all you can really do now is stay here in case he gets in contact or comes back home."

With the officer gone, Penny announced her intention to drive to where Leonard's car had been found, stating that she had absolutely no intention of staying put and waiting for events to unfold. Heading back to her apartment she grabbed the $50 bill which she kept strictly for emergencies in a cookie jar on top of the refrigerator, the '_fill tank'_ light in her car was illuminated and she knew she would need gas before making the drive out to Orange County. Without delaying to change out of her uniform she left in a hurry, taking the stairs two at a time. Once out in the street Penny leapt into her car, tossing her purse onto the front passenger seat.

"No..no please don't do this.." she muttered, turning the key in the ignition for the third time and hearing nothing but a loud knocking sound from beneath the hood. "Ahhh dammit you piece of crap!"

From across the street having decided to check in on her, Daryl was dismounting from his motorcycle when he caught sight of Penny kicking out furiously at the tires of her car, her arms flailing wildly in the air. Frowning, he quickly came to the conclusion that whatever it was that was causing her distress, it was something far more serious than a car that refused to start.

"Hey Penny what's wrong?" Daryl called out as he crossed the street, noticing as he neared that she was crying and trembling almost uncontrollably.

Stepping back from the car Penny turned to face an enormously concerned Daryl.

"Leonard's...Leonard's gone.." choked with emotion and struggling to catch her breath, at first she was finding it impossible to formulate a coherent sentence.

"Gone where?" Daryl asked, wondering whether Leonard had made a rash decision to distance himself from Penny by moving out of the building. Penny shook her head as tears spilled helplessly down her cheeks .

"He's missing Daryl." She sobbed. "Leonard's missing..."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Thank you so much for the reviews so far. Just a brief chapter telling the story of the day of Leonard's disappearance from Leonard's perspective.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Big Bang Theory.**

"Leonard are you even listening to me?" an exasperated Sheldon demanded, glaring at his friend who had failed to acknowledge anything he had said in the last twenty minutes, his eyes remaining fixed firmly on the road ahead.

"Huh?"

"I want to schedule a bowling rematch with Stuart and the ghastly Wil Wheaton. I simply will not allow him to think that he's got the better of Sheldon Cooper..."

"Can't you just let it go Sheldon?" Leonard implored, following up with an exhausted sigh. After being compelled to listen to his roommate talk incessantly about settling his score with Wil Wheaton for the last two weeks and the entire journey to work that morning, he was thoroughly sick of the subject. "I told you before I'm not interested in a rematch." he added.

"But you're my best friend Leonard...surely protocol dictates that as my best friend you must back me up in my time of need.."

By now Leonard had driven into the parking lot at the university and was utilising his nearside wing mirror whilst reversing into his parking spot.

"So how about I call Stuart right now and set up the match up for this Friday?" Sheldon continued, digging into his pants pocket for his cell phone without waiting for a response from Leonard, it was clear that his last sentence was meant as a statement of intent rather than a question.

"You know Sheldon have you ever considered that there are more important things happening right now than your vendetta against Wil Wheaton?... Or I don't know that friendship is about _give_ and take instead of just taking all the time..."

Frowning Sheldon folded his arms across his chest defensively.

"What could possibly be more important than helping your best friend to get even with his mortal enemy?" he answered with an expression suggestive of his complete lack of understanding or ability to empathise. "I have to say Leonard I'm very disappointed by your attitude..."

Lost for words and with his patience exhausted, Leonard grabbed his travel coffee mug from the holder,

"We're gonna be late." he said gruffly, pushing open the car door and getting out. Choosing to ignore his friend, Sheldon proceeded to call Stuart as they made their way toward the university entrance and then along the hallway to their respective work areas.

"Hold on a minute please Stuart." Sheldon said, removing his cell phone from his ear to issue a further set of instructions to Leonard. "Don't forget that you have to take me to the grocery store after work tonight and then to the barbers.."

Without responding Leonard entered into his lab, stopping first to switch on the helium-neon laser before turning his attention toward the coffee maker.

"Good morning Dr Hofstadter."

Leonard was just pouring himself a much needed cup of extra strong coffee when the head of the physics department, Professor Gablehauser, poked his head around the door asking if he could spare a moment to speak with him.

"What can I do for you?" Leonard asked, taking a seat on a stool at his work bench. Pausing first to clear his throat Professor Gablehauser began to speak.

"Leonard I'm not one for beating around the bush so I'm just going to come straight to the point." he began, fiddling nervously with the cufflinks on his charcoal grey suit jacket. "As I'm sure you're aware the unfortunately the university has recently had a number of our high profile benefactors pull out. Times are really tough and as such the board has been forced to make some tough decisions.."

Lifting the steaming mug of coffee to his lips Leonard took a sip, he had a bad feeling about where the conversation with his boss seemed to be headed.

"Anyway I'm afraid the upshot is that there is going to be a substantial cut to the experimental physics department budget, which means that certain areas of your research will need to be halted with immediate effect.."

"So what you're saying is there's nothing you can do?" Leonard cut in, frustrated by the thought of all his hard work to date amounting to nothing, not to mention the mocking he was bound to get from Sheldon who seemed to revel in devaluing his research at every opportunity.

"I'm afraid not, but please understand Leonard it's nothing personal." Professor Gablehauser answered honestly, patting his employee on the arm. "There are a number of departments within the university that will be effected too." he added, as though that fact would somehow lessen the blow.

Distracted by Professor Gablehauser's news and his mind racing with thoughts of Penny, Leonard went on to make several calculation errors that morning, calculations which ordinarily would pose no challenge for the physicist with an IQ of 173. By mid-morning after a near accident with one of the lasers, he decided to abandon his work to take a break. It was then in an ill-considered moment of need, that he took out his cell phone to call his mother's office in New Jersey.

"Dr Hofstadter's office. How may I help you?" a chirpy female voice chorused at the end of the line.

"Hi I'd like to speak with Dr Hofstadter please." Leonard said. "You can tell her that it's her son Leonard."

"One moment please."

After a minute of being left on hold listening to a recording of his mother's voice listing her numerous credentials as a psychiatrist there was a click as the call was eventually put through.

"Leonard why are you calling me at work? You know that I'm extremely busy."

On the receiving end once again of his mother's frosty manner Leonard's heart sank. Just for once he wished she could demonstrate a little warmth and caring towards him, apparently however that was far to much to ever hope for.

"Hello Mother I just thought I'd call for a chat...it's been a while since I've heard from you..how are you?"

Leonard heard his mother exhaling deeply.

"Clearly you have a problem with your short term memory Leonard, I've just said that I'm extremely busy." she answered abruptly. "Is there some kind of emergency?"

"Well no, but things haven't been that great for me recently..." Leonard began, staring sadly at the photograph pinned to his locker of him and Penny on a day out at the beach, despite their break up somehow he hadn't been able to bring himself to take down.

"Leonard I don't have time for this. If you must insist on speaking with me while I'm at work you will need to make an appointment with my secretary..."

There was a click as the call transferred back to the chirpy secretary who offered to be of assistance by making him an appointment in a month's time.

"Forget it." Leonard said flatly, before hanging up.

From that point Leonard's day failed to improve. In the cafeteria at lunchtime Howard and Raj set about trying to convince him of the merits of hooking up with Leslie Winkle for rebound sex.

"I'm telling you Leonard the best way to get over Penny is to have some '_no strings attached'_ fun." Howard said as he took up his seat beside Raj at the table. "And I ask you can you think of a more suitable candidate than Leslie Winkle?" he added, wriggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"He's right dude." Raj interjected, pointing at Leonard with his empty fork. "All this moping about isn't doing you any good."

Not having the energy or the inclination to come up with a suitable response, Leonard continued to pick disinterestedly at the beeforoni that to him tasted like cardboard, in any event he was totally devoid of appetite.

"And after you're done with Leslie I reckon you should come out with me and Raj at the weekend. We can hit some bars...hook you up with a girl." Howard continued with a boyish grin, rubbing his hands together gleefully as he contemplated what he was sure was an infallible plan.

"Excuse me, but have you gentleman forgotten already that we have a bowling match this Friday?" Sheldon piped up, narrowing his eyes. "Only this time I guarantee you we will _'crush'_ Wil Wheaton. Victory will be ours because I have a secret weapon lined up..."

Scrunching his napkin into a ball and tossing it onto his plate Leonard pushed back his chair and rose to his feet.

"Hey Leonard where are you going?" Raj questioned, noting that there was still half an hour of their lunch break remaining and Leonard had barely touched his food.

"I have work to do." Leonard answered tersely, before swinging his satchel over his shoulder and hurrying toward the door.

"Leonard don't forget you're taking me to the grocery store and the barbers after work..." he heard Sheldon call after him. "I shouldn't need to remind you that Dr Plimpton will be arriving tomorrow.."

Leonard never made it back to his lab that afternoon. Overcome by a sudden urge to escape his current surroundings and yet with no predetermined destination, he left work, got into his car and began to drive. After driving aimlessly through the streets of Pasadena for a period of time, he eventually found himself on Colorado Boulevard West driving passed the Cheesecake Factory, where in the parking lot he spotted Penny getting into her car with a tall dark haired man. Bringing his car to a stop by the curb across the street, Leonard held his breath as he watched Penny's head come slowly to rest on her companion's shoulder.

"No..." he whispered heartbroken tears filling his eyes, spilling out and rolling down his cheeks. Convinced that he had just witnessed Penny snuggling up with her handsome new beau, he slammed his foot down hard on the accelerator and sped away.

* * *

Before he knew where he was Leonard was approaching the intersection at the end of Los Robles Avenue, coming to a stop at a red signal. A few moments later the signal changed to green, but with a row of cars behind impatiently revving their engines to go Leonard froze, his car remaining stationery.

"What the hell are you waiting for?!" an irate driver yelled with his head stuck out the window, following up his angry rant with a rude hand gesture and several loud blasts on his horn.

Straight ahead Leonard's gaze was fixed on the green road sign baring the name of the street on which he had lived for the last seven years, a place that held so many happy memories. Yet now, overwhelmed with feelings despair and panic he could no longer face going back there. With a multitude of car horns sounding in his ears, Leonard reached out his trembling right hand putting his car into drive, taking then a left turn onto Atlantic Boulevard heading for the freeway and out of the city...

* * *

Leonard didn't stop driving until he reached the secluded spot along the Santa Ana River where he and Penny had spent a blissful day picnicking the summer before. Alone in his car, he ignored the succession of calls that he received from Sheldon on his cell phone, eventually switching it off and depositing it in the glove box along with his wallet and his keys to the apartment. Gazing sadly at the photo of Penny which he'd kept in his wallet for as long as he could remember, Leonard delicately traced the outline of her face and hair with his finger, smiling briefly through his tears as he recalled how happy he'd been. Painfully, he'd come to realise that he'd never loved anyone as much as he loved Penny and was all but certain that he never find love like that again. This was it. This was goodbye. Wiping away his tears with the back of his hand and leaving the photo behind on the dash, Leonard got out of the car and slowly walked away...


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Big Bang Theory.**

Dr Plimpton never did come to stay in apartment 4A. With everyone in shock over the news of Leonard's disappearance, President Siebert offered to step in to play host to the cosmological physicist from Princeton University. That night the four friends set about printing off hundreds of flyers depicting Leonard in his trade mark hoodie top and green recycle t-shirt, working relentlessly until dawn was breaking over Pasadena. The following day, with only a couple hours of broken sleep on the couch in the respective apartments, Sheldon and Penny set out to make the drive to Orange County, leaving Raj and Howard behind going through a list of all Leonard's contacts. What followed was a long and frustrating day of driving around putting up flyers in and around the area where Leonard's car had been found, which among other places included a nearby gas station and diner. Along the river itself ran a trail popular with cyclists and joggers, as such much of the day was spent approaching passers-by and showing them photos of Leonard in the hope that they might have sighted him.

"We _will_ find him you know." Penny announced confidently, taking the unprecedented decision to try to engage Sheldon in conversation after driving the entire journey back to Pasadena in silence.

"I guess." Sheldon replied, accompanying his response with a noncommittal shrug of his shoulders.

"He's probably just gone off somewhere to sulk for a few days...you know how moody Leonard gets.."

"I suppose." came his second monosyllabic reply.

Choosing not be deterred by Sheldon's refusal to subscribe to her optimism Penny continued.

"Boy I'm gonna go so _Nebraska on his ass_ when he gets home, he'll wind up wishing that he'd stayed away..." she said, forcing a grin as she braked to stop at the exact same intersection from which Leonard had sped away from two days earlier.

"That's if the police don't find him first." Sheldon put in, they had both witnessed the boats searching along the river that day, but so far had deliberately avoided speaking of it.

"Yeah, well we both know that they're wasting their time doing that." Penny responded, her irritation evident in the tone of her voice. "Their time would be far better spent checking out comic book stores and movie theatres ...Leonard would never..." her voice trailed off as she realised that she couldn't bring herself to utter the words out loud. To think that Leonard might have succumbed to the river was simply too painful to comprehend.

Taking a right turn onto Los Robles Avenue Penny noticed that the fill tank light on the dash was illuminated once again, prompting her to make a stop at the Chevron gas station opposite to their apartment building. Getting out of her car to operate the gas pump, she was about to check her purse for her MasterCard when she caught sight of a short in stature, dark-haired man making his way along the sidewalk on the other side of the street.

"Leonard..." Penny whispered, her purse instantly sliding from her grasp, causing a loud clatter as its contents spilt out onto the ground.

Unable to see his face as he headed away down the street, but convinced by the hoodie top and Converse sneakers that he wore that it was Leonard, Penny gave chase, darting out of the gas station and onto the road. From the car Sheldon watched in horror as she weaved her way across four lanes of busy traffic, while all around cars sounded their horns and came screeching to halt in an effort to avoid the reckless blond . By the time Penny had reached the other side street, the person whom she believed to be Leonard had turned a corner and disappeared from sight.

"Leonard!" she yelled, bounding around the corner, lunging forward to seize hold of the man's arm. "Leonard where have you..."

With Penny gripping his elbow the man spun round to reveal the face of a stranger, aside from his attire and dark hair, he didn't resemble Leonard in the slightest.

"I'm...I'm sorry." she stammered, hanging her head with embarrassment, but mostly with the soul crushing disappointment that had now beset her. For those brief moments she had truly believed that Leonard had come home. "I thought you were...that you were somebody else.."

* * *

After the incident on the street that day Penny took her to apartment, locking herself away refusing to answer her phone or her door to anyone, adamant that she wanted was to be left alone. Somewhat reluctantly her friends obliged.

The following day Sheldon woke to discover the arrival of an unexpected visitor. Hearing of Leonard's disappearance from her son, Mary Cooper had decided to come directly to Pasadena, arriving early in the morning after taking an overnight flight from Texas.

"Mom what are you doing here?" Sheldon exclaimed as he opened the door still in his pyjamas and robe to find his mother in the hall with her suitcase.

"I came here because my little boy needs me." she said as she wheeled her suitcase into the apartment, seeing the stacks of flyers that his friends had produced piled up neatly on the coffee table. "Sweetheart I know how much Leonard means to you, he's you're best friend. I realise that you have your friends around you, but at times like this I reckon you need your mother too."

Aside from Leonard, Mary Cooper knew her son better than anyone and there was no doubt that she was right, Sheldon had never before been so relieved to see his mother.

"Now how about a hug for your Momma?" Mary Cooper asked, beckoning her son with outstretched arms. And for once Sheldon didn't protest.

Later that morning Howard and Raj arrived, the plan for that day was to design a website to raise awareness of Leonard's disappearance, while Sheldon and Penny had planned to drive out to Orange County again with more flyers.

"Penny still isn't answering her phone." Howard said, as his call went through to voicemail for the third time. "We know she's in her apartment, but she won't answer the door .."

Without speaking Mary Cooper put down her cup of tea and got up from the couch.

"Mom, where are you going?" Sheldon asked, watching as his mother made a beeline purposefully for the door of the apartment.

"Sometimes it takes one woman to understand another..." she declared.

Going out into the hall Mrs Cooper tapped lightly on the door of apartment 4B, waiting patiently before calling out to Penny.

"Penny sweetheart, its Mary Cooper here... Sheldon's Mom." she began, pausing again to wait for a response that initially didn't materialise. "We're all real worried about you darlin, won't you let me in just for a minute?"

"It's open."

With a heavy sigh of relief, Mrs Cooper pushed open the door, entering into the apartment to be greeted by an overpowering smell of cleaning products. On the floor, with only her feet visible from behind the kitchen island was Penny, scrubbing the tiled floor as though her very life were dependent upon it.

"Sweetheart are you ok?" approaching cautiously so as not to slip on the wet floor, Mrs Cooper found Penny dressed in a pair of faded blue jeans and her grey Nebraska football shirt, her hair tied back beneath a black scarf.

"This place is such a mess." she responded, while continuing to scrub vigorously. "Leonard's too polite to make a big deal out of it, but I know that my lack of housekeeping skills _really_ bothered him..."

Getting up from the floor Penny lifted the bucket of dirty water, emptying it into the kitchen sink before turning on the water faucet to refill.

"So I want the place to be extra clean for when he gets back.." she explained, retrieving a bottle cleaning fluid from the cupboard below the sink, pouring a generous amount into the bucket.

"Darlin you look exhausted." Mrs Cooper commented, noting Penny's ghostly white face and the dark circles beneath her eyes suggestive of a lack of sleep. "Do you really need to do this now?"

"There's no time like the present." Penny chorused with mock cheerfulness, briskly turning her attention to resume cleaning. "Anyway, I need to finish up now because I'm scheduled to work the dinner shift tonight at the restaurant. There's so much to do..." With her attention focused entirely on scrubbing the floor until it shone like a new dime, Penny didn't see the worried expression forming upon Mrs Cooper's face.

"Honey I don't think anyone will be expecting you to go into work today.." she said gently. "Not with Leonard being missing..."

"Leonard isn't _missing_...I told Sheldon yesterday he's just gone off somewhere to sulk and listen to endless emo music.." Penny responded dismissively, tossing the sponge into the bucket in exasperation, causing a giant splash. "Life goes on." Wandering over to the couch she flopped down exhausted, yanking the scarf from her head and tossing it onto the floor, her feet coming to rest on top of the assortment of magazines that were strewn over the coffee table. Taking up a seat beside her, Mrs Cooper reached for Penny's hand, squeezing it gently.

"Sweetheart, why don't you come over and join us for lunch? I'm cooking my fried chicken...you certainly look as though you could use a meal inside you..." she said, hoping to convince her to accept the offer. It had only been a couple of days, but already Penny was displaying signs of weight loss.

"Thank you Mrs Cooper, but I'm really not hungry." Penny answered, for the last forty eight hours she had existed entirely on copious amounts of coffee and a few slices of dry toast, right then the thought of eating an entire meal literally turned her stomach. There was a silence before Mrs Cooper continued.

"You know when I was on the airplane flying out here I prayed the whole time for Leonard to be found.." she began. "Maybe it would help if we said a prayer together."

Feeling decidedly awkward Penny started to fidget uncomfortably, chewing nervously on her bottom lip. While she was not the slightest bit religious herself, she had always admired Mary Cooper for having such strength of faith.

"I don't want to offend you Mrs Cooper, I really do respect your beliefs." She began, after a moment of careful consideration and deciding to be honest. "But I really don't think praying is going to help me right now. I've done a lot of things in my life that I'm not particularly proud of, I really don't see why God would choose to help me now..."

"Oh darlin it does work that way. God loves you no matter what." Mrs Cooper stated with a knowing smile.

"You _really_ believe that?"

"Yes I do. God hears all our prayers, no matter how great or small they are. It's just that sometimes the answer turns out to be no, but believe me he does hear us..."

Blinking back tears Penny turned her head away to stare over at the door, right at that moment she would have given anything for Leonard walk through it, putting an end to her torment.

"Here." Mrs Cooper continued, unfastening the silver crucifix that hung on a chain around her neck. "My Daddy gave this to me for my birthday when I was six years old, I want you to keep it until Leonard comes home..."

Smiling brightly Mrs Cooper lifted Penny's hair, fastening the chain securely around her neck.

"Thank you Mrs Cooper." Penny whispered, her voice trembling with emotion as she peered down at the tiny crucifix that now rested on her chest. Despite her lack of belief she was truly touched by her gesture.

"You're most welcome sweetheart. Now I think you could use a hug..."

Penny was relishing the comfort and warmth of Mary Cooper's embrace when her cell phone began to ring.

"Sorry I need to get this." she apologised, pulling out her cell phone from her jeans pocket, seeing that it was a caller from an unknown number.

"Hello...yes this is Penny speaking...Are you sure it was him?...Ok do you know the coffee shop on Main Street?... Are you able to meet me there in say half an hour?"

Mrs Cooper watched as Penny raced over to her small dining table to grab hold of a pen and notepad.

"Ok can you give me your name and your cell number please." she instructed, turning then to scribble down the information that was being conveyed by the person on the end of the line.

"Great. I'll meet you in the coffee shop in thirty minutes..."Penny garbled, ripping the paper from the notepad, tucking it into her jeans pocket. "Thank you_ sooo_ much!" she added, almost as an afterthought. Hanging up the call ended she let out a yelp of excitement, punching the air triumphantly with her fist.

"That was a woman she thinks she saw Leonard in a diner on the day he went missing." She announced, flashing her first genuine smile since Leonard's disappearance. "She went back there this morning and saw one of our flyers with his picture..."

"Sweetheart that's wonderful, but don't you think you should let the police deal with this?" Mrs Cooper cautioned as Penny set about removing a recent photo of Leonard that was stuck to her refrigerator, hastily stuffing it into her purse.

"No I have to do this myself." Penny insisted, shaking her head whilst slipping on her brown leather jacket and scanning her apartment in search of her car keys. "If it was Leonard then I'll go to the police afterwards, but I want to speak to this woman myself first.."

Seconds later, after successfully locating her keys and fuelled by a sudden burst of adrenaline, Penny was hurrying down the stairs to the lobby. Leaping into her car, she paused to touch the crucifix around her neck, closing her eyes and picturing Leonard in her mind.

"Please let this be him...let him be ok.." she whispered before turning the key in the ignition, and with only a cursory glance in the rear view mirror she drove off.

* * *

At the same time across town Stuart and his friend Wil Wheaton were making their way to Los Robles Avenue. Stunned by the news of Leonard's disappearance, they were heading over to Leonard and Sheldon's apartment to lend their support, leaving Stuart's cousin Dale minding the comic book store temporarily in his absence.

"You know what I said to Penny at the bowling alley about my ex-girlfriend?" Wil began, scrolling through the pictures on his cell phone that captured the humiliating moment when Leonard and his friends had been forced go into the comic book store dressed as female super heroes. "I never thought she would _actually_ break up with Leonard, I honestly didn't intend for it to go that far Stu."

Behind the wheel, focussed entirely on the road ahead Stuart nodded. He knew that Wil had told Penny about the girl that he had dated who had supposedly strung him along for two years before breaking up with him in a most brutal and uncaring fashion.

"You do believe me right?" Wil questioned, desperate for Stuart to assure him that he wasn't to blame. "I'll admit I wanted to wipe that smug smile of Sheldon's face, but I _never _wanted to hurt Leonard or Penny."

"Nobody knows why Leonard's disappeared Wil." Stuart pointed out, although privately he suspected that it did have something to do with his recent break up. After enduring numerous rejections from women and having suffered with depression himself for a number of years, there had been plenty of occasions when he had thought about giving up and running away. "I know the guys will appreciate us going over to help out. The fact is nobody could have known that this was going to happen..."

For the next mile the two men drove in silence, turning onto Main Street Stuart decided to switch on the radio to fill the somewhat uncomfortable silence, taking his eyes off the road literally for a spilt second in order to select his favourite station.

"Stu watch out!" Wil yelled.

Slamming down his foot hard on the brake, the tires on Stuart's car shrieked as it came to a sudden stop. What followed was a blood curdling thud as a pedestrian flipped up onto the hood, slamming against the windshield before rolling back onto the road.

"Jesus..." Stuart breathed, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, his body frozen with sheer fright. It had all happened so fast, the pedestrian had come out of nowhere, stepping off the curb right in front of his car affording him absolutely no time to stop. With Stuart unable to move, Wil leapt from the car. There lying in the road, with a tiny trickle of blood escaping from her nose, her blond hair spread out around her head like a fan was Penny.

"Oh my God Stuart its Penny!" Will screamed, pressing his fists to the sides of his head.

Locked into what seemed to be an uncomprehending state of shock, Stuart failed to respond to Wil's shouts for him to call 911, forcing him instead to call out for help to a young couple who were stood aghast on the sidewalk. Just as he fell to his knees on the ground beside Penny, a man declaring that he was an emergency room doctor came running over to assist.

"Her name's Penny.." Wil said with a shaky voice. "She's a friend. Please tell me... will she be alright?"

From the twisted angle of Penny's left leg, the doctor was certain that it had been broken as a result of the impact. From the rhythmic rise and fall of her chest she was at least still breathing which was a positive sign, although the full extent of her injuries was as yet to be determined. A few seconds later Penny's lips moved as she began to stir.

"Leonard.." she moaned, opening her eyes to see the face of a stranger looking down at her.

"It's ok Penny. You're gonna be alright. My name's Anthony I'm a doctor. I need you to just lay still, can you tell me where it hurts?"

"Leonard..." Penny repeated.

"Are you Leonard?" the doctor asked, turning to Wil.

"No. He's her boyfriend." Wil answered.

"Well you'd better call him and get him to meet us at the hospital." the doctor said, turning his attention thereafter back to his patient.

Across the street in the coffee shop the woman that Penny had been on her way to meet was glancing periodically at the time on her cell phone in between taking sips from her glass of her water. After waiting for more than half an hour she was now aware of a commotion in the street outside, through the window she could see the large crowd of on-lookers which had gathered and the flashing lights of emergency vehicles.

"Must be serious." the server from behind the counter remarked as she cleared away empty coffee mugs, proceeding then to squirt the table with a disinfectant spay before wiping it down "Can I get you anything else?" she asked.

"No thank you. I think I'll be going now." the woman responded, gathering up her purse and fishing out a few coins to leave as a tip.

"Makes you think doesn't it." the server continued with a faraway look in her eye, absentmindedly wiping the table. "How your life can change in a split second...it makes you wonder if we all have a destiny...you know like there is a plan for all of us.."

Departing the coffee shop, the woman stepped onto the sidewalk outside just in time to witness the ambulance pull away from the scene, across the street a tall slender anxious looking man with dark curly hair was being questioned by a police officer. Poised to turn to walk back to her car, there was a sudden powerful gust of wind, bringing with it a piece of perforated notepaper, which as the wind subsided came to settle on her left shoe. Bending down the woman scooped up the note, startled to discover that it bore her name and cell number.

**_Amy Farrah-Fowler_**

_**Cell: 310-338-5978** _


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N I would like to thank you for the reviews so far. Positive feedback and constructive criticism are always appreciated. This chapter focuses on what happened to Leonard in the days following his disappearance. **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Big Bang Theory.**

Leonard shifted awkwardly on the plastic seating in the bus station, yet no matter how often he changed position it seemed impossible to get comfortable. Gazing up at the large digital clock on the wall he let out a heavy sigh, the hours spent waiting had dragged by and there was still another half an hour to go until his bus was scheduled to depart. Two days on from leaving behind his life in Pasadena Leonard's appearance had changed considerably. No longer clean shaven, he was now sporting a short stubbly beard, which before long would grow to be like the one he'd acquired whilst on the expedition to the North Pole the previous year. Deciding also to ditch his hoodie top and corduroy pants, he had used some of the $400 in cash that he'd taken from his wallet to buy two check lumberjack shirts and a pair of jeans from a thrift store. After managing to hitch a lift with a truck driver that was heading east, Leonard had slept the first night on the road in his cab and the second in a motel across the street from the bus station in which he was now waiting.

"Are you alright young man?" an elderly lady knitting a flamboyantly coloured sweater asked, peering over the rims of her spectacles at the agitated young man in the seat opposite. "You seem a little on edge." she remarked.

"I'm fine thank you." Leonard answered, nervously shifting position once more, anxious to avoid engaging in conversation with the woman who he sensed was about develop an intense curiosity in his circumstances.

"Not to long now." the woman added, nodding in the direction of the dot matrix sign that displayed the list of the bus arrival and departure times. "Are you traveling home to see family?" she asked politely, pointing toward the bulging khaki coloured rucksack that was resting on the vacant seat beside him.

"No." replied Leonard flatly, rising from his seat to make quick his escape. "Excuse me. I have to use the rest room."

Intent on denying the woman opportunity for further probing, Leonard hurried away, moving to a spot around the corner where he was out of sight. It was then that his eyes wandered over to a row of payphones, one of which was currently in use by a young woman of a similar age and features as Penny.

"I can't wait to see you either honey." she cooed, absentmindedly twisting a strand of her golden blond hair around her finger, a faraway look in her eyes. "I've missed you too sooo much, but it's just gonna be a few more hours and I'll be home...ok gotta run my bus is leaving soon."

Hanging up the phone, the young woman span around to catch Leonard staring out her intently, his head cocked to one side.

"Can I help you?" she demanded, looking him up and down and scowling at what she deemed to be a somewhat shabby appearance. As an attractive blond she was accustomed to getting hit on bycreeps and based on her rapid assessment of Leonard had concluded that he was about to do just that. "Didn't your Mom ever tell you that it's rude to stare?" she snarled.

"I'm..I'm sorry I didn't mean.." Leonard stammered, averting his gaze away from the woman and down to the floor.

"Looser." the woman muttered under her breath as she stomped off, cursing as she went.

Until that moment Leonard had almost entirely managed to eradicate thoughts of Penny and his friends, shaking each thought of them off by reminding himself that in the long term they would be better off without him. Driven by a desire to escape the past, he had reached the decision that he no longer wanted to be Leonard Hofstadter. To him, Leonard Hofstadter was the man who had shamefully allowed himself to be treated like a doormat by his roommate for the last seven years and who had endured a childhood of relentless bullying and an upbringing devoid of any love and attention from his parents. Above all else, Leonard Hofstadter had failed in his attempt to form a lasting relationship with Penny, the girl he now knew to be the love of his life and who he had lost forever. With all these factors in mind, he had concluded that his only option was to leave his old life behind and start over. Raising his head to focus once more on the row of payphones, at last Leonard submitted to his conscience, picking up the receiver of the nearest phone he inserted a few coins before dialling Penny's cell phone number. Instead of ringing however, the call transferred directly to voicemail.

"_Hi you've reached Penny. Sorry I can't take your call at the moment, please leave a message..."_

Blinking back tears, he hung up the phone, his mind awash with images of Penny in her car outside the Cheesecake Factory, her head resting delicately on Daryl's shoulder.

"I can't...I can't" he murmured, leaning his head against the wall, punching it with a clenched a fist in sheer frustration. Somehow he just couldn't find the words. "I'm so sorry Penny...its better this way...you don't need me anymore."

"Hey buddy are you ok?"

Hearing a voice calling out to him, Leonard turned to look back over his shoulder, discovering that it belonged to the man serving behind the concession stand.

"Looks like you're bleeding there." he said, signalling to Leonard by touching his own nose.

Mirroring the action of the man, Leonard wiped beneath his nose, flinching at the sight of the streaks of blood left behind on his fingers.

"You don't look so good." the man commented, frowning at what time him was a ghostly white man with beads of sweat glistening on his brow, blood trickling from his nose.

"I'm ok." Leonard tried to insist, but was then quickly overcome by a bout of giddiness as he bent over to retrieve his rucksack causing him to momentarily loose his balance.

"Really? You don't look ok to me. Maybe you shouldn't be traveling today."

Closing his eyes, Leonard inhaled slowly seeing Penny again in his mind's eye, only this time she wasn't with Daryl, but sat on the couch in her apartment staring with a lost expression at the door. All around he could hear muffled, indistinct voices repeating her name over and over, followed by a mechanical tapping sound that seemed to get louder and louder as it continued.

"Maybe you should call someone ..."

Leonard flinched again as the man from the concession stand came up behind him placing his hand on his shoulder, gripping it lightly.

"Oh man I think you should see a doctor." he stated, beneath his hand he could feel Leonard's quivering body. Something was clearly very wrong.

"Get off me. I told you I'm fine." Leonard snapped uncharacteristically, swiftly extricating himself from the man's hold just as the announcement for the departure of his bus was being made. "I need to go. That's my bus."

Feeling as though his chest were being squeezed in a vice, Leonard removed his asthma inhaler from his pocket taking two long puffs which mercifully provided him with almost instant relief.

"Look why don't you come over and sit with me behind my stand? You can use my phone to call someone...a friend or a family member...maybe you could have them come pick you up." the man suggested, his concern for Leonard heightened after seeing him needing to use his inhaler. There was a silence, broken by a second announcement indicating the imminent departure of Leonard's bus.

"I don't have any family or friends." he said, quietly observing the last few passengers boarding the bus outside through a rain streaked window. "Thank you, but I really need to go now..."

With Leonard headed outside to his bus, the man sighted a book lying on the ground in the spot where only seconds ago his rucksack had been. Hastily snatching it up, he raced outside to find Leonard already aboard the bus that was now edging away from the terminal.

"Hey your book!...you forgot your book!" he yelled, waving aloft a copy of _The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy._

His favourite book whilst growing up, it was the only item reminiscent of his former life that Leonard had permitted himself to take with him after purchasing it that morning along with his clothes at the thrift store. Now even that memory was about to be left far behind...

* * *

For Leonard the next few days of seemingly endless bus travel passed in a blur, his journey eventually coming to an end in a small town in the mid-west where once again he opted to stay in the cheapest motel he could find. Despite his exhaustion, that first night he barely slept a wink, kept awake by a combination of an uncomfortable bed and the sound of a couple fighting in the room next door. It wasn't until the dawn light was beginning to creep into his room that he finally managed to fall asleep, drifting then into dreams of home and of Penny. Awaking just after mid-day Leonard resisted the urge to stay hidden away in his room, deciding instead to get up, to get washed in the small sink in his room, to dress and head out to take a look around the town. After an hour of wandering aimlessly, he found himself passing by a dilapidated looking general store with an old metal Coca Cola sign baring the date 1962 suspended above the door. On the porch outside stood a freezer filled with freeze-pops and ice creams which hummed noisily. Recalling that he had almost out of toothpaste Leonard decided to go inside, pushing the door open to be greeted by a bell chiming overhead. Passing along rows of neatly stacked shelves in search of toothpaste, his attention was drawn to the elderly couple working behind the counter huddled over a computer. Considerably taller than his wife, the man although completely grey, had a good head of hair for his age and a long bushy moustache. His wife, who was a little on the plump side, had her hair tied up in a bun and wore spectacles which hung on a chain around her neck. Both were wearing matching dark green aprons, embroidered with the words '_Brown's General Store'_ in red lettering. Scanning the shelves for the cheapest brand, Leonard couldn't help but overhear their somewhat heated exchange.

"Henry I told you stop touching it isn't helping!" his wife snapped, setting upon on her husband, angrily swatting his hand away from the keyboard.

"I really don't know why we keep this thing. Its more trouble than its worth!" her husband came back, shaking his in head in contempt at the screen. "I'm telling you it was much easier when we just kept printed records of all our stock..."

"Henry need I remind you that we're in the 21st century now?...besides having a computer saves time..." Mrs Brown argued, turning her attention back to the computer that was refusing to boot up.

Folding his arms across his chest Mr Brown let out a derisory snort.

"If that's so Maggie, tell me how come we've spent all morning trying to get the darned thing to work huh?!" he huffed, ignoring his wife's pleas not to interfere by continuing to punch the keys randomly in the vain hope of resolving the problem. "And we _still_ haven't managed to place any orders..."

Caught up in the midst of their quarrel, Mr and Mrs Brown didn't notice Leonard waiting patiently by the cash-register until he coughed, finally drawing their attention away from the troublesome computer.

"Excuse me Mam... Sir I'd like to pay for this please." he said, placing the toothpaste on the counter.

"Oh I'm sorry about that son." Mr Brown said apologetically, ringing up the toothpaste on the cash register and placing it inside a small brown paper bag. "As you probably heard my wife and I disagree somewhat over the merits of technology..." For the first time in weeks Leonard's lips curled into a tiny smile as he handed over his money.

"Maybe I could take a look at it for you.." he offered.

"Oh that's very kind of you to offer." Mrs Brown began. "But we wouldn't want to keep you from whatever plans you might have..."

"I don't have any plans today." Leonard replied with a shrug. If anything he was grateful for a reason to delay going back to the motel. "It wouldn't be any trouble." he added.

Mr and Mrs Brown looked at each other and for a moment Leonard thought that they were going decline his offer, he was after all a complete stranger that only minutes ago had walked in off the street into their store.

"Well that's really decent of you son." Mr Brown said, smiling brightly as he beckoned Leonard to join him on the other side of the counter. "I don't believe I've seen you around town before." he added, pulling up a chair to allow Leonard to sit at the computer. It was then that he realised how ill-prepared he was for the inevitable questions.

"I'm er..I'm new in town." Leonard stammered. "Well passing through actually I'm looking for some work..."

"Not much work to be had in this town now." Mr Brown said with a woeful sigh, putting out his hand he went on to introduce himself and his wife. "I'm Henry Brown and this is my wife Maggie."

Leonard hesitated, pausing to clear his throat nervously.

"I'm Ben." he said in a low voice as he shook Mr Brown's hand, deliberately focusing on his hand in an effort to conceal his unease.

"Ben would you like something to drink?" Mrs Brown offered, smiling sweetly. "I was just about to make some iced tea would you like one?"

"Yes please Mam." Leonard replied, smiling back at the lady with sparkling green eyes, although it seemed strange due to her age, but in some ways she reminded him of Penny.

"So do you reckon you can fix it?" Mr Brown asked, after his wife had disappeared out the back of the store in the direction of the kitchen.

"I think so. I've seen this problem before with this model." Leonard began, cutting himself short when he realised the potential for opening himself to questions about where he had acquired his knowledge of computers. Glancing over his shoulder Mr Brown could hear the distinct sound of glasses clinking coming from the kitchen as his wife went about making the iced tea. Bending over and lowering his voice he spoke directly into Leonard's ear.

"Son I have to ask you're not in trouble with the law or something are you?...because my wife and I we don't need any trouble." he said firmly.

Looking Mr Brown directly in the eye this time Leonard answered, shaking his head as he reassured him.

"No Sir. I promise you its nothing like that."

Despite the fact that he'd only known him for a matter of minutes, there was something about Leonard or Ben as he was now calling himself, which convinced Mr Brown that he was telling the truth. Something was clearly troubling the young man that had wandered into his store, but he was sure it wasn't because he was on the run from the police. Just then Mrs Brown reappeared with three glasses of iced tea on a tray.

"Here you go." she announced cheerfully. "Drink it while it's cold.."

For the next two hours Leonard worked on fixing the Brown's computer and by late afternoon much to Mrs Brown's delight, it was fully restored and operational.

"I managed to recover all your stock data." he explained, demonstrating by opening a file and scrolling through the list of items. "You should find it runs a lot faster now too. You just need to make sure that you keep your antivirus software updated."

"Oh thank you Ben!" Mrs Brown beamed, clapping her hands together gleefully. "You hear that Henry? We're back in the 21st century again!"

"Hmm." Mr Brown mused, stroking his chin and eyeing the computer with scepticism. "I'm still not sure about all this technology stuff, but you may well have saved my marriage Ben...who knows what might have happened if you hadn't showed up to save the day!" he said, giving Leonard a hearty pat the back.

With the knowledge that his task for the day was completed and that he would soon be heading back to the motel Leonard's heart sank.

"Might I ask where you're staying ?" Mrs Brown enquired as Leonard rose reluctantly from his chair, stretching his arms above his head to relieve the stiffness.

"I'm booked into Peterson's Motel for tonight." he answered, once again experiencing a pang of regret that he was leaving the company of the couple that had made him feel so welcome that afternoon. Hearing this Mrs Brown wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Rumour has it round town that you need to have shots to stay in that place." She said with a shudder, in fact that was one of the nicer comments that she'd heard about the motel that the town's people referred to as the _'flea pit'._

"Oh I wouldn't say it's that bad." Leonard lied.

"Perhaps you'd like to join us for dinner Ben? ..To say thank you for helping us today." Mr Brown offered, with an expectant smile. "My wife has a bad habit of over feeding me, so you'd be doing me a favour!" he joked, evidencing his statement by rubbing his hand over his protruding stomach. Returning the smile Leonard nodded, accepting willingly.

* * *

Leonard hadn't realised the extent of his hunger until Mrs Brown set down a mouth-watering meal of chicken and mash potatoes before him.

"Easy there son you'll give yourself indigestion if you carry on eating like that..." Mr Brown cautioned, using a set of tongs to help himself to another portion of salad. "Anyone would think that you haven't eaten in a month..."

After pretty much existing on junk food for the last week, this was the first time since leaving home that Leonard had eaten a freshly cooked meal. Putting down his fork, he paused taking a sip of water from his glass.

"I'm sorry I guess I didn't realise how hungry I was." he apologised, not wishing to appear greedy and uncouth. "Thank you Mam. Your food is delicious."

For the rest of the meal they ate mostly in silence, once finished Leonard offered to clear away the dishes and wash up.

"No don't be silly you. You let me take care of that." Mrs Brown insisted, gently pushing Leonard's hand away before gathering up the plates and going out to the kitchen to make coffee.

"So I guess you'll be moving on from here come tomorrow ...you know seeing as isn't any work." Mr Brown said, using his napkin to wipe away a speck of stray mash potato from his chin.

"I guess." Leonard answered. In truth he had no idea what he was going to do, all he knew was that he couldn't go back home. After a brief pause in the conversation, Mr Brown went on to tell him about how difficult the last few years had been after a new hypermarket had opened up on the outskirts of town, almost putting his store out of business.

"Yeah it's been a real struggle for Maggie and me." he explained, accompanying his statement with a sigh of regret. "I just can't compete...not with a place where everything's cheaper and jumbo sized to boot. People say you can pretty much buy anything you could ever possibly need there... And now my doctor says I have a bad back, reckons I should give up working entirely." he added, massaging the small of his back with his left hand. Leonard couldn't help but wonder why a couple of Mr and Mrs Brown's age were still working, but not wishing to appear that he was prying decided it would be politer not to ask. A minute later Mrs Brown reappeared with a steaming pot of coffee which she proceeded to pour, offering Leonard milk and sugar.

"No thank you I take my coffee black." Leonard said.

It was with a mix of sorrow and regret that Leonard finally said goodnight to Mrs and Mrs Brown, shaking the couple by the hand in turn, thanking them again for their hospitality. Expecting to return to the motel to listen to round two of the fight in the room next door, Leonard was relived to find it all quiet, with no sign of the couple who had apparently moved on. The next morning as he awoke and retrieved his glasses from the nightstand, he noticed a manila envelope which had been pushed under his door. Inside the envelope was a note from Mr Brown.

_Dear Ben,_

_I came by last night, but it was late so I decided to leave this note. I know that you'll be heading out of town today, but could I ask that you call by the store this morning? Maggie and I would like the chance to speak with you._

_Sincerely,_

_Henry Brown._


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'd like to thank those that have read and reviewed my story so far. Constructive criticism/feedback is always appreciated. This next chapter will focus on Penny, after which I'm planning that the next chapters will focus on Leonard.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory.**

"Almost there...just a few more stairs..." Daryl coaxed his arm firmly around Penny's waist, supporting her as they scaled the final steps reaching the landing outside apartment 4B. With her left leg in a fiberglass cast extending up to her knee and a permanently out of order elevator, Penny had stubbornly refused his offer to carry her up the four flights of stairs. "I really don't know how you're gonna manage." he added, sighing woefully at the sight of the elevator with the yellow and black tape criss-crossed across the door.

"I'll manage. Believe me after four days in that hospital I'm just glad to be back home. Elevator or no elevator." Penny responded, taking hold of her set of crutches in order to make the last few steps unaided while Daryl unlocked the apartment door.

"Well, I still think you should get onto the building manager about getting it repaired." Daryl remarked for the second time that day, eliciting a sad smile from Penny who unlike him knew of the circumstances which had led it to be out of order for the past seven years. In an effort to lighten the mood, Howard and Raj had recounted the story of Leonard moving in with Sheldon and the subsequent incident with the exploding rocket fuel in the elevator. "Or you could take me up on my offer of staying with me for a few weeks; at least my building has a functioning elevator." he added, opening the door and bending down to pick up Penny's hospital bag. Entering inside, Penny was reminded of her frantic episode of cleaning on the day of the accident, making for a pleasant surprise when she found her apartment to be exceptionally clean and tidy for once. On the dining table by the window stood an opaque glass vase filled with a dozen fresh white roses, while on the coffee table rested a large fruit basket wrapped in cellophane.

"Thank you Daryl. That's really thoughtful of you." she acknowledged with a weary smile, getting up the stairs had taken its toll and she was relieved to finally be able to collapse down onto the couch. Fetching a pillow from the bedroom, Daryl carefully positioned it beneath her injured leg.

"I thought they might cheer you up a bit." he said as he plumped a couch cushion, placing it behind Penny's back. "Bernadette and Howard did a grocery shop for you, so there's plenty of food in your refrigerator and Raj has baked you his famous chocolate lava cake." he announced with a satisfied smile. "Oh and I went by the store this morning to pick up your new cell phone, it's fully charged and ready to go." he said, producing a brand new iPhone from his jacket pocket to replace the one that had been damaged as a result of the accident.

"I still can't believe I just stepped out from the sidewalk without looking." Penny berated herself, her gaze dropping shamefully to stare down at her lap. "It was so dumb...poor Stuart."

The last thing Penny recalled was digging inside her purse in search of her ringing cell phone, distracted by everything that was happening she had walked out into the road without checking for oncoming traffic. A day later whilst in the hospital, she had learnt that the woman that she had been on her way to meet that day had gone to the police with the information she had about Leonard. According to her, she had been driving out to Orange County to visit her sick aunt in a nursing home when she had sighted Leonard in a diner conversing with a truck driver.

"It's been nearly a week Daryl." Penny stated, her despair mounting with every passing day that Leonard failed to return. "I just don't understand _why_ or _how_ he could do this."

"I really wish I knew Penny." Daryl said sympathetically, longing to be able to offer his friend the answers that she was so desperately seeking. "I guess something just tipped him over the edge..."

Although he hadn't shared his experience with Penny, Daryl had been friends with someone at college who had gone missing for nearly two years before eventually returning back home. When speaking about it, she had described feeling how she could no longer cope with events in her life and how she'd left convinced that her family and friends were better off without her. It was an action which she'd come to regret, and yet she admitted that she had never intended to cause her family pain. _"I just seemed to loose all my capacity to think rationally..."_ she had told Daryl, shortly after returning home.

"It feels like he's punishing me.." Penny said, her bottom lip quivering with emotion. "I need him here Daryl...more than _ever..."_

Picking up on what Penny had just said, Daryl frowned. Although understandably upset over Leonard, he sensed that there was something she was keeping from him and her friends.

"Penny is there something you haven't told me?" he coaxed gently, hoping to entice her into sharing with him whatever it was that was bothering her. "I mean something other than Leonard going missing?"

Daryl waited patiently for Penny to respond, seeing her open her mouth partially as though she were about speak, but then seemingly deciding against it.

"Penny?" Daryl repeated.

"No. It's nothing.." Penny dismissed with a casual wave of her hand, purposefully averting her eyes away from Daryl, noticing for the first time the hand written card stuck to the fruit basket. "I'm just exhausted with worry about Leonard." Despite being unconvinced by her explanation, Daryl quickly made his mind up not to press her further, deciding instead to change the subject by offering to fix something to eat.

"Actually Daryl I think I'd like to be on my own for a while." Penny said quietly, experiencing a slight pang of guilt for wanting him to leave after he had shown such kindness. "It's not because I don't appreciate everything you've done. I _really_ do... a lot." She insisted, registering the look of disappointment on his face. "But I just need to be alone right now."

"Ok. Sure I understand." Daryl responded with a nod, squeezing Penny's right knee. "You should probably get some rest anyway. Promise me that you'll call if there's anything you need?"

"I promise." Penny said with a smile intended to reassure. Rising to his feet, Daryl made a point of readjusting the pillows before bending over to give her a goodbye peck on the cheek.

"Thank you Daryl. I'm so lucky to have such good friends." she whispered gratefully. "I don't know how I would have got through these last few days without you guys..."

With Daryl gone, Penny's attention wandered back to the card attached to the oversized basket of fruit. Leaning forward, she removed it, realising then that it wasn't from Daryl as she had assumed, but from Amy Farrah-Fowler, the woman that had called about Leonard. The writing on the card wished her a speedy recovery, followed by a sentence about the giving of fruit to those recuperating being a '_social convention'. _

'_Sounds more like something Sheldon would_ say' Penny thought to herself, wondering how she'd found out about the accident and come by her address. Taking hold of the crutches that had been carefully positioned within easy reaching distance beside the couch, Penny made her way to the bedroom and was surprised once more to find the bed made and the floor devoid of the usual scattering of clothes. Slowly opening the drawer of the nightstand, she removed the small velvet bag that contained the preserved snowflake which Leonard had brought back from his expedition to the North Pole. Bringing it to her lips she kissed it, closing her eyes and savouring the memory of him presenting her with it, promising her then that it would last forever. With the snowflake held tightly in her hand, she laid down on her bed, pulling the comforter over her body.

"Please come home Leonard..." she murmured, no longer able to keep her eyes open. "I need you..."

After falling asleep for a number of hours Penny eventually awoke in the early part of the evening, deciding then to prepare herself something to eat. She had just selected a meal from the wide selection available in her refrigerator, when there was a knock on the door.

"Its open." she called out, looking up from studying the cooking instructions on the packaging to unexpectedly see Wil Wheaton's head peering around the door.

"Hey Penny. I hope you remember me I'm Wil. Stuart's friend...We met at the bowling alley a few weeks ago." he began, attributing Penny's bewildered expression to her not remembering who he was. "I heard that you got out of the hospital today. How are you?"

"I'm ok I guess." Penny shrugged.

"I got these for you." Wil continued when Penny failed to elaborate, taking a few paces forward he placed a large red box of candy with a decorative black ribbon on the kitchen island.

"Thanks."

"No problem. It looks like you've already had plenty of get well gifts." he commented, noting the bouquet of roses, fruit basket and numerous 'Get Well Soon' helium balloons in a Hello Kitty design.

"Actually Wil I was just about to eat..." Penny told him, hoping to quickly rid herself of the visitor with whom she had no desire to engage in small talk with.

"Actually I really need to talk to you about something Penny, its kind of important...perhaps you should sit down." Wil suggested, nodding in the direction of the couch and offering his arm. Hesitating slightly, Penny took hold of Wil's arm, allowing him to guide over to the couch.

"Look there's no easy way to say this, so I'm just gonna come out with it." he began after nervously clearing his throat. "Do you remember that stuff I told you at the bowling alley about my ex-girlfriend?"

Penny nodded; the events of that evening would almost certainly be etched in her brain forever.

"I'm sorry Penny, but none of what I told you was true. I made it up it because I wanted your team to forfeit the match so I could get back at Sheldon."

"What?" Penny gasped, her hand coming to rest over her mouth.

"But you have to believe me I _never_ intended to hurt you and Leonard." Wil continued, quick to weigh in with his defence. "I was just trying to get back at Sheldon for harbouring that ridiculous grudge of his."

Determined not to cry in front of the man that had been instrumental in her breakup, Penny swallowed hard, deciding instead to unleash her anger.

"So you thought you'd come over here with a cheap box of candy to apologise and off load your guilt did you? I suppose you think that makes everything ok now don't you?" she spat out, exasperated that he could stoop so low as to deliberately engineer a rift between a couple simply to win a bowling match.

"No. I didn't think that at all." Wil insisted. "I just thought after everything that's happened recently you deserved to know the truth. I know it was a totally crappy thing to do, but believe me I would never had said that stuff if I'd known what was going to happen."

Taking a seat on the couch Wil continued to argue his case, all the while Penny's anger grew until she could no longer bear to listen.

"I want you to leave Wil." she said firmly, cutting him off mid-sentence. With the aid a single crutch she got over to the door, opening it wide and moving aside to allow her unwelcome visitor to leave. "I want you to go _right now_." She repeated, in a low unmistakeably menacing tone.

Letting out a defeated sigh Will stood up. "Ok I know I did a bad thing." he conceded, approaching the door and a stony faced Penny. "But I don't think either of us should be blaming ourselves for what Leonard's done..."

"And what exactly do you mean by that?" Penny demanded, narrowing her eyes. Whatever it was that Wil was about to say, she strongly suspected that it was going to incite her anger still further.

"I've heard stuff about Leonard Penny..You know about his parents and his childhood." he began to explain, referring to the gossip that had been circulating among the patrons of the comic book store. "Don't take this the wrong way, but even if you hadn't broken up with him, it sounds to me like Leonard was already pretty messed up..."

It was so quick that Wil didn't see Penny's ferocious slap coming his way until it had landed squarely on his left cheek, leaving behind a bright red imprint.

"How dare you!" Penny seethed, her eyes flashing with rage. "You don't know the first thing about Leonard or me..."

With his hand pressed to his cheek Wil raised his head, about to offer another apology, only to discover to his dismay that the altercation had been witnessed by Sheldon, Raj and Howard who unbeknown to him had emerged from the apartment opposite. At that moment also Daryl appeared at the top of the staircase, after deciding to come over when Penny had failed to answer her cell phone. With his head bowed low, ensuring that he avoided eye contact with Leonard's friends who were now glaring at him, Wil sloped off silently down the staircase.

"Penny what just happened?" Howard demanded as they watched Wil disappear out of sight around the corner. Closing the door on her friends, Penny returned to the couch where she ignored the subsequent knocking and pleas for her to let them in.

"Do you guys have a spare key?" a concerned Daryl asked, after several minutes of calling out to her and failing to get a response.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea dude." Raj cautioned, as a friend he loved Penny dearly, but after three years of knowing her he knew that sometimes it was better to leave her alone. Howard was in agreement.

"No. I think there's something wrong." Daryl protested, turning to look again at the door that continued to remain firmly shut. With their attention focussed on Penny, Howard and Raj hadn't noticed Sheldon returning to his apartment where he found his mother busy packing to return home to Texas.

"Shelly, I thought you were going to the comic book store with your friends." she commented, neatly folding a navy cardigan, placing it in the suitcase that was laid out on the coffee table. Turning her attention away from her task to look at her son, Mary Cooper knew immediately that something was wrong. "Sweetheart what is it?" she asked.

Sheldon already loathed Wil Wheaton with a passion, but hearing him speak about Leonard had infuriated him beyond measure.

"Is it Penny?" Mrs Cooper questioned, reaching out to touch her son on the arm.

Sheldon simply nodded.

* * *

All three friends experienced the same profound sense of sadness as they entered the comic book store later that evening for the first time since Leonard's disappearance. Greeted by stares and the sound of whispering from the other customers, they realised that unusually Stuart was absent from behind the counter. In his place was a short, dark-haired young man wearing glasses and a Batman t-shirt.

"Who are you? Where's Stuart?" a bemused Sheldon asked, approaching the counter, clutching the comic book which he intended to exchange.

"I'm Dale. Stuart left me in charge." he answered, sniggering nervously. "He went out... to meet a girl..."

At that very moment four blocks away Stuart was parking his car outside the Coffee Bean in Lake Street. Had it not been for Howard recommending the online dating website and encouraging him to go on a date with the only girl that had responded to him, he was sure he that he would have talked himself out of it. As it was he didn't hold out much hope, by all accounts it seemed as though her sole motive for dating was in order to appease her overbearing mother with whom she had an agreement to date at least once a year. Crossing the road hurrying toward the coffee shop, Stuart stopped momentarily to peer in through the window, recognising the girl that sat alone with long brunette hair, glasses and wearing a red cardigan from her profile picture.

'_Too late to back out now.'_ he thought to himself as he pushed open the door. Stepping inside his date spotted him, getting to her feet to greet him.

"Stuart Bloom?" she enquired, in a formal almost business like manner.

"Yeah." Stuart stammered, his face turning a bright shade of crimson. "You must be Amy..."


End file.
